Published February 20, 2020
By DAN NUNN
LAUREN SULLIVAN had 18 points and seven rebounds during a senior night win over Triton on Feb. 13. Sullivan was one of five seniors honored before the game. (John Friberg File Photo)
NORTH READING — The NRHS girls’ basketball team picked up their 10th win of the season to qualify for the MIAA Division 2 State Tournament with an easy 48-23 road win at Ipswich on Feb. 11.
Senior captain Ali Grasso carried North Reading with 20 points, four rebounds and three assists and fellow senior captain Lauren Sullivan was solid with 10 points, six rebounds, four assists and four steals. North Reading had a huge 51-29 rebounding advantage and racked up nine 3-pointers.
The Hornets got off to a great start as they raced out to a 14-7 lead by the end of the first quarter. The Tigers responded with a 12-4 run to take a 19-18 lead with just over two minutes left in the second quarter. North Reading was able to close the half with five straight points and went into the break up 23-19.
The second half was a much different story as the NRHS defense stifled Ipswich. They outscored the Tigers an astounding 25-4 and cruised to the easy win.
Cruise past Triton 52-36
The Hornets used a strong second half to cruise past the Triton Vikings 52-36 on Senior Night on Thursday. Lauren Sullivan was a beast with 18 points and seven rebounds. Junior Julia Howse was an inside presence with nine points, nine rebounds and nine blocks and sophomore Nasha Arnold was a monster on the boards with seven points and 12 rebounds.
Before the game, seniors Kiley McCarthy, Ali Grasso, Lauren Sullivan, Maddie Cullen and Julia DiNapoli were honored.
The NRHS defense left something to be desired in the first quarter. They surrendered 15 points and trailed Triton 15-10 after one. North Reading seemed to wake up in the second stanza and turned things around. They scored 16 points and turned the deficit into a 26-24 halftime lead.
The Hornets strong defense made things really difficult on the Vikings in the second half as they continued to build the lead. Triton got to within five at 41-36 early in the fourth quarter but NRHS closed on an 11-0 run to win going away.
Grasso leads Hornets past Everett
Ali Grasso was outstanding with a career high 31 points as the Hornets upended D1 Everett 63-50 on Saturday. It was a terrific win for NRHS as the Crimson Tide entered the game with an impressive 16-2 record.
Grasso also had five rebounds, four assists and four steals while Julia Howse added a double-double with 11 points, 11 rebounds and five steals. Kiley McCarthy contributed as well with solid defense on the Everett point guard. The North Reading defense swarmed all night as they caused 29 turnovers and picked up 13 steals.
The 12-6 Hornets will play two games in the Ed Gieras Tournament this week at Danvers High.
The seedings for the Div. 2 North Tournament will be announced on Friday.
